Connect with us

SOCIAL

X Faces Potential FTC Scrutiny Over Missing Ad Labels, While Creators Complain of Ad Revenue Share Errors

Published

on

X Deactivates Old Media Links Amid Changes to Back-End Elements

It seems that X’s ad delivery system is suffering through a few glitches, which could end up leading to larger challenges for the X team.

While owner and CTO Elon Musk continues his public battle against the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), users have found that many X ads are being displayed in-stream without their required “Ad” label, while some X Premium subscribers are also not seeing ads appear on their profiles, limiting their ad revenue share.

On the first issue, as reported by TechCrunch, many X ads are currently being displayed without the recently updated “Ad” signifier shown, which would be in violation of FTC rules.

As per TechCrunch:

In our tests, we came across a good handful of unlabeled ads from accounts we didn’t follow. In fact, the only indication they were an ad was by clicking on the three-dot menu at the top-right of the post. When you click this menu on an ad, you’re presented with various engagement options like “Not interested in this ad” or “Why this ad?” as well as tools to follow the account, mute it, block it and more.

Many users have said that they’ve noticed the same, which could become a much bigger headache for the app, if indeed the FTC starts looking its way.

As you may recall, back in July, X began transitioning its ad display markers from the previous “Promoted” tags to a new, much smaller “Ad” disclosure in the top right of the post.

This is designed to make ads seem more organic in-stream, but it may also, in itself, be in violation of the FTC guidelines relating to adequate notice of paid promotions.

The FTC requirements on this state that all ads must be “clearly and conspicuously” signaled within digital apps. In a previous iteration of the rules, the FTC listed the requirement as “clearly and prominently”, so it may be that the X’s new “Ad” labels are now okay under this revised definition. But then again, the FTC says that both definitions are still valid, which could suggest that X’s smaller “Ad” labels are not prominent enough, depending on how the Commission defines such.

So what’s this got to do with X’s current missing ad labels issue?

Well, thus far, X seems to have avoided any FTC scrutiny over this change, but that could be because the FTC is waiting to receive an official complaint. Which means that maybe, X has only gotten away with these less conspicuous labels because the FTC hasn’t actively investigated them, and maybe, if this new issue is brought to the attention of the Commission, that could put all aspects of its ad display under the microscope.

Because I don’t think there’s any way that you could argue that a small, faded, two-letter tag in the top right of a post qualifies as “clear and conspicuous” labeling

Maybe, there’s some definitive measurement that the FTC uses to rule on such, but it seems like this should be a concern, and this new missing ad labels problem could end up putting X under renewed pressure on this front.

The other issue is ad delivery, and X subscribers not seeing ads displayed on their profiles. That highlights another problem with X’s ad revenue share program, which is still in the process of working out how exactly it pays participating users.

But X is paying them, so how it’s actually paying people without having this all ironed out seems pretty fraught with potential errors.

And if X slips up on this, and creators end up seeing less ad revenue share as a result, you can bet that they’ll turn on Elon’s app faster than you can say “Blaze Your Glory”.

It seems that, maybe, these issues are aligned, and are part of a broader glitch in X’s ad delivery system. And with the company dealing with such a significant system change, with 80% fewer staff, while also seeking to transition to a new domain (x.com), and implement algorithmic shifts, it’s not surprising that there are occasional errors here and there.

But again, these glitches are significantly problematic, in the sense that they can lead to larger challenges.

Though Elon himself seems to be focused elsewhere, as he battles for free speech, by taking on Californian law makers, and the ADL, over what he sees as attacks on X’s push to allow more open communication.

Though in the ADL’s case, it seems that Musk is contradicting his own stance. In Elon’s view, free speech means that people should be able to say and post whatever they want, with the audience then left to decide what’s true and what’s not.

In that sense, the ADL should be able to say whatever they want too, right? If the ADL says that antisemitism has increased on the platform since Elon took over, and advertisers take that into account when deciding whether or not to run ads, that’s the exact type of free speech that Elon’s lauding in action. Right?

It seems, once again, that Elon’s view on free speech is a little more flexible than his outward statements suggest, with Musk regularly seeking to shut down any type of speech that impacts him, or his business interests, even if it contradicts his public claims.

Like, Elon saw no problem in labeling a random person as a pedophile, which caused that person significant reputational harm, but the ADL noting, with evidence, that X is allowing more hate speech is beyond the pale?

Essentially, X is likely to come under more regulatory scrutiny, and face more challenges as a result of all of these elements. Maybe it comes out stronger on the other side, but there’s certainly never a dull moment on Mr. Musk’s wild ride.



Source link

Keep an eye on what we are doing
Be the first to get latest updates and exclusive content straight to your email inbox.
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Invalid email address

SOCIAL

How to Train ChatGPT to Write in Your Brand’s Tone of Voice [Infographic]

Published

on

How to Train ChatGPT to Write in Your Brand’s Tone of Voice [Infographic]

Are you looking for ways to improve your ChatGPT output? Want to train it to write in a more unique tone of voice, in order to better suit your branding?

The Creative Marketer shares his ChatGPT prompt tips in this infographic. To enact these, add “Write like [INSERT CHARACTER]” at the start of your ChatGPT instructions.

TCM breaks things down into the following categories:

  • Innocent
  • Sage
  • Explorer
  • Ruler
  • Creator
  • Caregiver
  • Lover
  • Hero
  • Everyman
  • Magician
  • Jester
  • Outlaw

Check out the infographic for more information.

A version of this post was first published on the Red Website Design blog.

Source link

Keep an eye on what we are doing
Be the first to get latest updates and exclusive content straight to your email inbox.
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Invalid email address
Continue Reading

SOCIAL

Elon Musk reinstates far-right conspiracy theorist Alex Jones on X

Published

on

Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones has been reinstated on X, formerly known as Twitter, by company owner Elon Musk

Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones has been reinstated on X, formerly known as Twitter, by company owner Elon Musk – Copyright GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File Joe Buglewicz

Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of X, on Sunday reinstated far-right conspiracy theorist Alex Jones on the social media platform, a year after vowing never to let him return.

Jones, who claimed that a December 2012 school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut that killed 20 children and six educators was a hoax, was banned from the platform — then still known as Twitter — in 2018 for violating its “abusive behavior policy.”

He was also sued by families of the victims of the Sandy Hook school shooting and ordered by a judge in the case to pay up more than a billion dollars in damages last year.

Musk had himself promised never to let the Infowars host back on the social media platform, which he bought last year for $44 billion.

But following a poll Musk conducted on X asking whether Jones should be reinstated, to which some two million users responded, he flipped that decision.

“I vehemently disagree with what he said about Sandy Hook, but are we a platform that believes in freedom of speech or are we not?” the SpaceX founder said on X.

But Shannon Watts, founder of the group Moms Demand Action group which pushes for tighter gun laws, said that “defamation is not free speech.”

Musk’s decision comes the same week that the Sandy Hook families commemorate the 11th anniversary of the December 14 shooting, which Jones alleged was staged to allow the government to crack down on gun rights.

Jones’ followers harassed the bereaved families for years, accusing parents of murdered children of being “crisis actors” whose children had never existed.

It also came a week after Musk had responded to advertisers pulling out of X because of far-right posts and hate speech, including an apparent endorsement by Musk himself of an anti-Semitic tweet.

Asked whether he would respond to the advertising exodus, Musk said in an interview with journalist Andrew Ross Sorkin that the advertisers could “go f*** yourself.”

Jones, who has a million followers on X, returned to the site with his first post re-tweeting Andrew Tate, the controversial former kickboxer facing rape and human trafficking charges in Romania, in which he hailed Jones’ “triumphant return”

US media reported that as of Sunday, the account of Jones’ controversial show Infowars was still banned.

Source link

Keep an eye on what we are doing
Be the first to get latest updates and exclusive content straight to your email inbox.
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Invalid email address
Continue Reading

SOCIAL

Instagram Launches New ‘Close Friends Only’ Podcast to Showcase Celebrity Users

Published

on

Instagram Launches New ‘Close Friends Only’ Podcast to Showcase Celebrity Users

Not sure if this will be a valuable addition, or another stream that’ll fade out pretty quick, as Meta stops paying attention to it.

Today, Instagram has launched a new podcast called “Close Friends Only”, which it says will present “the latest on culture – from memes and icks, to fashion and friendship – all from your favorite celebrities.

And they’ve gone big out of the gate, with the first episode featuring Ice Spice in conversation with Doja Cat.

The conversation sees the two stars discuss their favorite memes, their favorite animals, celebrity crushes, experiences in flirting on IG, their juiciest DMs, and more.

Which will no doubt get a heap of attention, and will help make Instagram a bigger focus for youngsters seeking to replicate their idols. But in terms of practical advice or tips, yeah, there might not be a heap there.

But it could be worth tuning in anyway, in order to get the lowdown on the latest trends, from some of the people that are leading the way on cultural shifts.

But then again, as noted, it’ll be interesting to see how IG follows this first episode up, and whether they keep running regular episodes of the podcast with more celebrities.

Either way, it’s an interesting promotional vehicle for IG, especially given that it’s focusing on musicians, as TikTok becomes an even more critical platform for music promotion.

Maybe, then, this will be Instagram’s counter to that, but again, we’ll have to wait and see whether more episodes arrive.

Source link

Keep an eye on what we are doing
Be the first to get latest updates and exclusive content straight to your email inbox.
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Invalid email address
Continue Reading

Trending